Sunday, September 15, 2013

It’s no wonder why so many
people are turned off by Christianity, when there’s so many negative
voices dominating religious discourse. When I encounter an atheist, or
agnostic, or someone who simply walked away from Christianity, I
usually encounter someone who’s been hurt by Christians. And I hear all
sorts of stories of Christians behaving badly.

I hear stories
about the mean Sunday School teacher who scolded them for asking
uncomfortable questions about the creation story, saying questions
reveal doubt and that doubt is a sin.

I hear stories about the
angry preacher who condemned them for walking away from an abusive
marriage, because, they say, divorce is a sin.

I hear stories
about the overly pious aunt who said that science was from the pit of
Hell when they told her they were studying biology at school.

And
when they drive past churches, they don’t see places where God’s people
dwell. They don’t see places where they feel they can walk through the
door without wearing spiritual body armour. They see places where they
have to become someone they know they aren’t nor who they want to be,
before they can even start looking for a parking spot...(whole thing here)